Resources and Tips at Loyola for Lining Up Summer Jobs and Internships

As the end of the school year approaches, increased numbers of college students across the country have begun searching for summer jobs and internships. 

During the early summer months, the hunt for positions for undergraduate students and permanent full-time jobs for recent graduates spikes, with the youth labor force — 16 to 24 year-olds — having grown by 12.9% between April and July 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Associate Director of Career Development Advising and Education Jon Rosenfield said while factors like COVID-19 have previously impacted students’ abilities to find summer employment, there are resources designed to help Loyola students find jobs and internships.

“For many, many students, when it comes time to look for an internship or time to look for a job, it kinda feels like, ‘Maybe I don’t know what I’m doing, and it feels like I should,’ or maybe everybody else seems like they know what they’re doing,” Rosenfield said. “That’s not true — very, very many students feel like they don’t know what they’re doing.”

Avery Glunt, currently a masters student studying finance, said she had no idea how to search for jobs and internships when she was entering college as a first-year. She said she was “totally lost” before coming to Loyola. 

Rosenfield said Loyola’s Career Services offers a wide range of tools and resources, such as resume and job search guides which are available on the department’s website and career-related YouTube videos. Students can find on and off-campus job and internship listings posted for Loyola students through the career management platform Handshake, according to Rosenfield. 

Handshake can also be used to make appointments for career advising, pre-health advising and Quinlan School of Business coaching, according to the Career Services website.

Senior psychology major Elani Williams said Handshake has been a useful tool for finding jobs within the university. In 2019, she became a Peer Advisor after applying to the position through Handshake, and she recently used Handshake to apply to be a first and second-year advisor this summer after she graduates.

Glunt said she has used Handshake to connect with employers after attending career fairs at Loyola. She said Handshake streamlined the application process because it allowed her to search for people she met at the events.

Williams said a willingness to apply to positions and ask for help from advisors and mentors can be beneficial for students going through the job or internship search process.

“The worst thing they can say is ‘No,’” Williams said. “So being open to those opportunities by asking for help is a big piece of advice I would give.”

Williams also uses LinkedIn to search for positions. She said it’s a more personal and specific platform to search for jobs as it allows users to build professional connections with other users and employers. Rosenfield said he also suggested students turn to websites like Indeed and ZipRecruiter to find available positions for the summer. 

In addition to networking through online tools, Williams said networking through personal relationships can benefit students finding jobs and internships. She said she found her current position as a student researcher at Loyola’s Institute for Racial Justice by talking to friends and family.

Networking is an important aspect of expanding the job and internship search for students, according to Rosenfield. He said networking isn’t about just asking someone for a job or internship — it’s about understanding the knowledge others have in certain fields and gathering information from them.

“Let them understand who you are and what you’re about and what you’re trying to get into, maybe skills that you bring to the table,” Rosenfield said. “Then, that’s just knowledge that they have in their mind in case they come across something that they think would be relevant to share with you.”

Loyola’s Career Services has also recently developed platforms specifically for Loyola students to find jobs and internships, as well as connect with alumni and other students for guidance.

One of these is Loyola Launchpad, which was released last spring. The site is designed to be a one-stop service for students searching for jobs, especially graduating Loyola students, according to Career Services’ website.

LoyolaLinked has been in a “soft launch” phase this semester to ensure a balance in alums and students on the platform, according to Rosenfield. The new platform is a Loyola-specific networking and mentoring tool, similar to platforms like LinkedIn. Alumni can make accounts to seek career advice and mentor current students, and students can use the tool to receive guidance and search for job opportunities through alumni, according to the platform’s website.

“Right now, there’s a pretty good combination of folks in different areas on there,” Rosenfield said. “But the idea is, these are Loyola alums and Loyola students connecting specifically because, you know, everybody is a Rambler.”

Glunt said she recommends students be proactive when searching for jobs and internships.

“A lot of deadlines are sooner than you think they are, and getting your name in early is always a good thing,” Glunt said.

While the search for summer jobs and internships can feel difficult and confusing, Rosenfield said the resources offered through Career Services can help when finding positions.

“I just want people to know that they’re not alone, and that we can help,” Rosenfield said.

Resources for jobs and internships are accessible through the Career Services website, and appointments with Career Services can be made throughout the summer.

Featured image by Holden Green | The Phoenix